Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to articulating doors for motor vehicles, and more particularly to a checkstrap assembly operative to positively locate a passenger door in an infinite number of positions between a fully open position and a closed position.
In a conventional manner, passenger doors of motor vehicles are pivotally mounted to the vehicle body for movement between a fully open position and a closed position. Many such vehicle doors are designed to cooperate with a checkstrap which is operative for positively locating the door relative to the vehicle body. Additionally, on sloped surfaces, the checkstrap provides a mechanism to hold the door in its open position. Typically, a vehicle door will have an intermediate point between fully open and fully closed where the door will rest in a stable fashion. In situations where a space laterally adjacent to a passenger door prohibits the door from fully opening, opening of the door to the intermediate position may reduce incidents of unintentional damage.
In one common form, prior checkstraps for vehicle doors include a roller mounted to the vehicle body and an arm contoured to cooperate with the roller which is carried by the vehicle door. In this regard, the arm is formed to include one or more camming surfaces. The roller functions as the cam follower. As the door is moved between its fully opened position and its closed position, the arm remains in constant engagement with the roller. When the door is gently opened or closed, the cam surfaces of the arm and the roller cooperatively function to positively define an intermediate position at which the door may be located relative to the vehicle body.
While known arrangements are known to be commercially acceptable, they are also limited with specific disadvantages and thereby subject to improvement. In this regard, the common roller camming arm configuration provides one set intermediate position which the door can securely rest. Usually the camming surface encourages the door to rest in one of the defined locations. This situation often requires operator to hold the door when the defined locations are not acceptable. Often the intermediate position may not be in an optimal location for a given situation. It may be desired to open the door securely in a position greater or less than the set intermediate point and leave it thereby unassisted.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a checkstrap assembly for a passenger door of a motor vehicle having an infinite number of secure door locations between the fully closed and fully open position.
It is still another object of this invention to provide a checkstrap assembly for a passenger door of a motor vehicle having a minimal amount of resistance.
In order to obtain these and other objects, the present invention provides a checkstrap assembly for a door of a vehicle which is movable in relation to a door frame between a closed position and an open position. The checkstrap assembly includes an arm passing through an aperture in the door. The arm has a first end interconnected to a hinge fastened to the frame such that the door may be selectively moved relative to the arm. A second end is adapted to cooperate with a roller assembly within the door. The roller assembly includes a brake disk, carriage slot and guide. The roller assembly is configured such that the brake disk is always under load, which can be exerted through a spring, weight, magnet or equivalent. The load is exerted from the brake disk onto the supporting face within the housing which creates a braking force when the door is in a static state. When the door is moved, the checking force is capable of overcoming the friction between the brake disk and the supporting face allowing free motion of the door. Carriage motion is predetermined by the guide which is affixed within the door. In a dynamic state, the arm pushes (pulls) the roller assembly across the guide causing the brake disk to move along the carriage slot and away from engagement with the inner wall. When the door stops, the brake disk tends to return to the central position which corresponds to the state of minimum potential energy and the state at which the brake disk is engaged with the supporting surface of the housing.
Further areas of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description provided hereinafter. It should be understood however that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, are intended for purposes of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.